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Tuesday, November 12, 2019

'The Great Duggar Campout' Recap

Counting On "The Great Duggar Campout"

Every Monday, the Duggars do family night. Everyone who is available
gets together at the big house for dinner and an activity. “It seemed like as
our family has been expanding, there for a while, we weren’t getting together
with all of our extended family on a regular basis, and it’s really been a
blast,” says Jim Bob.

This week for family night, the Duggars are going on a camping
trip, planned by Jana. When they arrive at the Devil’s Den State Park campground, Jim Bob and
the boys meet up with an orienteering instructor to embark on a map challenge.
Jana collects their phones before they leave. “All of us girls thought it’d be
fun to take the boys’ phones away,” says Jana. “That way they’d have more of an
experience of really just using a map and trying to find their way to camp.”

Meanwhile, the ladies set up camp and make dinner. They have
an RV and some tents, which they successfully put up using girl power.

Towards the end of their trek, the guys have to cross a
50-foot river. They attempt to use boards and tree trunks, but the river is moving
too fast.

“First person across wins,” says Jim Bob. “I’m going to show
you how to do it.” He then proceeds to fall in the water. “Thankfully Jana had
confiscated all the cell phones, so my cell phone didn’t get wet.” They end
up successfully wading across but are a bit wet when they make it back to the campsite.

“Having all the get togethers and being with all the
grandbabies and the kids, it does bring back memories of having all 19 in the
home,” says Michelle. “Never a dull moment, lots of busyness, and really a lot
of joy. We’re just so thankful.”

The family prays together before their meal. During dinner,
Josiah and Lauren announce that they are expecting. “We had been trying for
quite a while after the miscarriage,” says Lauren, who is nine weeks pregnant. The
mom-to-be admits that she is nervous.

The next morning, Jana organizes team building exercises. The
first features a wooden A-frame with ropes attached to it. One
person stands in the A-frame, while the others grab the ropes and try to
maneuver the A-frame across a field without letting the person in the middle fall.

The second game is called the ski challenge. Four or five
people stand on a set of wooden skis and have to move their feet in unison.

Many miles away in Los Angeles, Jinger and Jeremy are apartment
hunting. They will soon make the move from their four-bedroom, 1400-square foot
home in Laredo so Jeremy can attend the Masters Seminary. Barbara and Peter,
the Vuolos’ property managers and members at the church they will attend, are
their guides.

On the first day, the Vuolos tour a contemporary apartment
and an apartment in Vintage Hollywood, which is right below the Hollywood sign.
The interior and exterior of the second apartment are incredibly charming. “You
feel like you’re in Europe,” says Jinger.

The following day, they visit a detached home with four bedrooms
and three bathrooms, located off Sunset Boulevard. The property is used by the
church, and the owners are willing to lease it to the Vuolos for several months so they can have more time find a permanent place. “I can see myself enjoying the Jacuzzi
tub quite a bit,” says Jeremy.

Jinger, Jeremy, and Felicity go to a local coffee ship to make
a decision. While the ministry house will require them to move twice, it is large
and beautiful and will be a great place for them to begin their LA journey. That's the one they choose.

If you have multiple sisters-in-law pregnant, then yes, four months can seem long. She probably rarely went a day without seeing someone pregnant. That is a big reminder that your stomach is empty. She also struggled with depression. The fact that she desperately wanted and ached for a baby has nothing to do with understanding how the human body works.

I'm a little surprised at Lauren's comment too. After miscarrying our first, my OB specifically instructed us not to try for at least three months. It had been his experience that your body needs time to recover and you and you both need time emotionally to process and begin healing. Maybe because my OB was older and had a lifetime of experience, but he was very wise. He also didn't want a second child to grow up under the guise of being a "replacement"-either in his/her parents eyes or anyone else's. He was sooo right.

10:03 your OB was wise. Lauren lost her pregnancy very early, so waiting to pregnant most likely wasn't necessary. I wonder if they are grateful, they had a much shorter wait than many couples, Joy and Austin have most likely been instructed to wait for several months. The. fantasy of "rainbow babies" and "angel babies" seems like a way to avoid reality.

8:31,I don't think you understand the definition of a rainbow baby. It's referring to the bright side of having a baby after losing a baby, like the rainbow after a storm. It doesn't mean the storm didn't happen, it means that something good happened after something bad. That is not a fantasy, it's a metaphor. Now angel babies are a fantasy. Humans and angels are separate beings, and humans do not turn into angels.

I'm sure Si and Lauren were a bit apprehensive about announcing the second pregnancy, who wouldn't be after their sad disappointment last year. Not everyone was listening and from the reaction were completely surprised.....others have said it already...are the Duggar's ever shocked by a pregnancy announcement? The only couple who could shock me at this point would be JB and Michelle. That scene at the campsite serving dinner, they actually looked like typical America. I'm not sure there will be any "shocking" "surprises" in the near future, but who knows 😸

I’m happy for Lauren and her now baby Bella. But she does seem to have an unrealistic view on life. A couple months isn’t a long time to get pregnant and on the other episode she said she expect marriage to be spending all day each day together.. seems like these girls arnt educated very well.

Anon 9.28. I like this young couple very much, I have always had a soft spot for Josiah who seemed such a sensitive little boy & I was so happy he found a nice quietly spoken girl to marry. However I don’t think the way Lauren is has anything to do with education. I think she has had a very sheltered existence, so many things that seem difficult to her, would not seem so to others. 4 months is extremely quick to get pregnant as on average it takes a healthy couple 12 months. However to Lauren after her miscarriage & with all the sisters in law that were pregnant, it’s no wonder she thought 4 months a struggle. I think these young women do have somewhat rose tinted ideas of marriage & life in general but that is more because of the way they have been brought up. My daughter is only 21, but seems a decade older in her ways & what she expects from life. Her boyfriend & her I tend to save for a good few years before they get married, she has a good career in teaching & if he suggested taking a year off after they get married to be together, well my daughter would have a flying fit & tell him she would be bored silly without her work, but that’s just the modern society she has grown up in. I don’t know about others on the blog but I often feel the young girls like Lauren & Kendra are reminiscent of a 40s or 50s wife that stayed home & cooked & cleaned. Nothing wrong with that so long as they are happy, it’s just a very different existence to what most of us have had. I also think we cannot say Lauren didn’t struggle for those 4 months, she probably went through hell, seeing all the other girls getting pregnant, it would of heightened the fact she felt she had failed in some way. I’m just so very happy that baby Bella has arrived in the world fit & healthy. Hopefully it will help Lauren get over her miscarriage now she has a baby to focus on.

I have observed Lauren to be trying hard to be mature. She is after all still very young and had a fairly sheltered life. She met someone, got engaged, got married and had a miscarriage in pretty quick order. She now knows bad things happen to good people. I hope Si and Lauren and all the adult Duggar children raise their kids with a little less shelter, as fast as they marry and have children they need to know rarely is their a fairytale.

It seems like the only announcement the family ever makes is either a baby or courtship. Why can’t there be an announcement on a job or something other than a baby every episode! Even the family doesn’t act shocked anymore, their faces gave it away

I think the girls put too much pressure on themselves to get pregnant, they seem to think a wife has to get pregnant and seems like they don’t have any reason to live if they don’t get pregnant. A couple months isn’t a long time to get pregnant either, that’s quick.

It's not just the young women, it's the WHOLE family putting pressure on them to get immediately pregnant. They're all obsessing over having babies as quickly as possible. That's why 4 months felt like such a "long time" to Lauren

I don’t think the family puts any pressure on them to get pregnant at all. They are excited when God blesses one of them with children, but I don’t see them constantly asking or encouraging them to have kids. Jinger didn’t have a baby right away and neither did Abbie. Just because they love children doesn’t mean they are trying to force anyone to have them. Lauren seems to really want children herself not that she is being told she needs to or has to have them.

I’m sorry but “we had been trying for quite a while”.. ummm.. she miscarried in October and got pregnant again in February. That’s 4 months. The average couple takes 6 to 12 months. Lauren clearly has no idea what it actually is to struggle with infertility.

But 4 months feels excruciatingly long when you’ve had a loss and are dealing with depression from it ta boot. You clearly haven’t had a loss, or if you have, you haven’t LONGED for a baby after! I experienced it 4 times before we managed a living baby, and the empty aching arms and hearts was extremely difficult EACH time and every month that went by without getting pregnant felt SO long! At the same time you’re scared you’re just gonna lose another one so the emotions you go through are so mixed up! You need to try to be more understanding please

Infertility is a huge loss-ask women who’ve waited years for God to provide. While miscarriage is traumatic, at least Lauren knew her body could conceive. Infertility vs. miscarriage shouldn’t be a comparison of loss. Try to be understanding, too. The commenters are right-this family has no clue how many years some women wait on 1 baby, when seemingly, shortly after giving birth to one, they’re planning on the next.

I think Lauren needs to talk to Michaela Bates...they have been trying to get pregnant for years. I understand that lauren very much wanted to have a baby but months compared to years is a big difference. Lauren’s statements are very hurtful to women who WANT to get pregnant but CANNOT.

The way Lauren is talking you would think they were trying to get pregnant for ages..they miscarriaged in oct and gave birth to Bella this week..that’s 13 months, just over a year for two pregnancies is very quick!

Lauren seems to think that you should get pregnant straight away and if you don’t something if wrong with you.. 13 months for two pregnancies is quick. Iv had a miscarriage and the wait to have another is heart wrenching but a couple months and she was pregnant. This is not long at all

4 months is ‘quite a while’, I find it odd that all the duggars seem to expect to get pregnant straight away and if they don’t they get quite upset. Anna fell pregnant four months after marrying Josh after saying she has so many negative tests..do they take tests everytime they try? Seems like they don’t wait until they are late and they just take a test straight away. This is not how the human body works

Anna was literally in tears over not getting pregnant immediately after marriage. If you want kids straight away, whatever, you do you, but why wouldn’t you try to establish your marriage before bringing a child into the picture? Enjoy some time with just you and your spouse before you go and add in morning sickness and dealing with an ever changing body.

Anonymous @ 12:31- I agree with you. We were counseled by our Pastor (who had a very good marriage, with visible mutual respect between himself and his wife) to wait a year. Living with your siblings in your parents home is vastly different than being married to someone and establishing your own home. Any honest person will tell you that there are a lot of adjustments to be made as the two of learn to become one (think and act as a team, putting each others' interests ahead of your own). Both people bring baggage to a marriage because they don't come from the exact same household. They have to learn the art of compromise. He has to learn to consider her wants and needs and she has to do the same regarding him (that's the actual biblical model in both Old and New Testament). If he's got her back and she's got his, marriage is an awesome thing. It's not going to always be perfect because we're not perfected yet, but if both people are committed to each other and willing to admit their failures and make the necessary corrections, it gets better and better as you grow together.

Lauren reminds me of Anna after she married Josh. After 4 months Anna couldn’t stand to look at the results of the tests anymore..why would you test so many times? Most normal people wait til they are late but duggars seem to take a test every few days.. Lauren got pregnant with Bella after 4 months, that is not ‘quite a while’. They need to learn how the human body works

The other highlight was when he told Tyler to go dig the hole, and handed him a shovel that happened to be conveniently leaning against the tree. Then poor Tyler started digging, as if Jim Bob were serious. Once again, Jim Bob got the laughs and attention he wanted.

I honestly don't understand how this family fits in as reality TV. I was the oldest of 14 and we worked hard on our farm to make a living. We raised produce and had a bakery in our house to produce things to sell at markets. We raised and butchered our own pigs, steers, and chickens and canned thousands of jars of food each year. We ran barefoot all summer, climbed trees, and played in the mud. We sewed our own clothes or got them at thrift stores. I'd like to see a show like that. The Duggars used to be simpler but even then they never canned anything. They bought canned stuff at the store. They had land. They could have raised most of their produce and meat. I'm married now and live as my parents did. I have four young children and we raise as much food as we can and live simply. I use cloth diapers just as my mother did and I have three in diapers. We don't have time or money for lots of trips or fancy clothes. I cannot imagine even wanting to live as this family does.

I was not brought up like you were and can't imagine that life. My family never farmed or produced our own food. So does someone have to have the same reality as you to be on a reality tv show? It is their reality not yours. There are a lot of reality shows that I won't watch, because I don't like the lifestyle portrayed. The Duggars are Christians who try to live the right way and that is why I watch them.

You sound like you were raised to have a strong work ethic, and will raise your family to have the same. I’m sure you’re busy with your little ones, but consider sharing your lifestyle and wisdom on YouTube-I’d enjoy learning more about saving money, baking tips, canning, etc. We thrift a lot for our clothing needs, and save a lot of money by doing so.

Anon 6:05 I would love love love to see a show based on the way you were raised or the way you are living and raising your children now. That would be so awesome to see a family that makes home goods and sells them at the local market, along with things you have canned. That would be so refreshing to see a show based on that type of lifestyle. My husband and I take our children to a local farmers market to buy exactly what you mentioned that your family made and sold. You must have come from a hard-working and such a productive family.

I was not trying to say that's the only "real" way to live, but people used to be very self-sufficient and it would do most children and families a world of good to get back to that. You can't rely on others for every product you need.

My family and I go to our local flea markets and farm market stores and we get the most delicious foods and baked goods grown and made from our local farm families. They are the most humble, nicest people you could ever meet. To have a show about them would be great.

Canning used to save money....today it gives you great quality but it costs more. By the time the Duggar's were on television they had laid the groundwork for financial security and while they talked about thrift stores and shopped there and some still do, they probably didn't actually have to. My mother canned (I'm 60), I just never had the desire. I went to college, worked outside the home and was only blessed with one child.....there is no right or wrong way to make your way as a family.

That's ridiculous as there is no way you could know that. I have no reason to assume it happened any differently than shown as it seems perfectly reasonable the way it happened. I can understand why you wouldn't be sure at first if you wanted a temporary home instead of just moving once.

Yes, this whole House Hunters thing looked staged. I also agree that the church house was already agreed upon. It's doubtful that it's just for a few months' stay. Their church and seminary are getting quite a bit of TLC exposure in the bargain. Mega churches like that are a huge business, raking in millions. I'm not sure why Jeremy would be a part of an organization that is plagued in controversy, as well as being on accreditation probation as a result.

The outcome is known now but it wasn't at the time of filming. It makes complete sense that the church representatives wanted to surprise them with the house. It is a kind offer so I would have saved the best for last as well. Plus, someone said "if you knew the housing market in CA'. What does that have to do with it? You mean know one ever moves to LA and lives in apartments? Obviously they knew it was going to be expensive, that's why they looked at apartments. It annoying that people are assuming they are lying about not knowing they had an offer for the house ahead of time. Always jumping to the worst conclusions.

I agree. Church/seminary most probably provides housing (or refers students). They did not show where Jeremy&Jinger stayed during that visit, who knows maybe they were already staying in that house :).

It's one thing to know about your Church agreeing to let you rent the house ahead of time; it's another thing to be a Christian and go on the air and pretend to an audience/the world that you have no idea about where you're going to live and go through a whole mini drama of trying to find somewhere to live in LA (knowing your Church is going to let you rent their house). That's deception masquerading as "entertainment". Pitching it as "reality TV" when it's anything but, is also deception. I expect that from people who don't know Jesus, but from people who say they do??? I don't think God's o.k. with that. Just because the Duggars are wealthy and "profiting" doesn't mean God approves either. The Bible tells the story of the rich, young ruler who ended up in Hell. The Bible's full of stories of rich people who were actually far from God. Wealth, fame, and a platform don't equate to approval from God.

I was thinking the exact same thing. I also think the “ temporary “ stay in the house will end up lasting for as long as they like. The seminary and church aregetting a lot of free advertising from TLC.

Lauren has not been”trying for quite awhile” to get pregnant after her miscarriage. It was only 4 months. She miscarried in October and had Bella in November, therefore 3 months. For all of us who have truly struggled with years of infertility I find Lauren to be very insensitive.

It was what Lauren was focusing on, so it made it seem like a long time. I struggled with infertility as well, so I know the hurt involved there. I never had a miscarriage. I think we have to allow other people to feel how they feel. We can never truly understand what other's are thinking and feeling. With multiple sisters-in-law pregnant, she was reminded daily that she was without child... so four months can be a long time.

Enjoyed the episode again. Unlike some other posters, I love having Jim Bob and Michelle more involved this season. I also thought Jeremy and Jinger's house hunting was just like an episode of "House Hunters." It was fun to see.

Jana has quite the skillset to plan and organize her large family. I always find it interesting to see her in the lead.

I think Josiah and Lauren's big announcement was staged and that the family already knew. Kendra stated that she was nervous about being pregnant at a time when Lauren was still struggling. But Kendra was wearing a T-shirt with BABY BABY splashed across it. If she were truly uncomfortable about the situation, there is no way she would be wearing that shirt. So I think the somewhat awkward announcement was just for the cameras.

I am also curious about next week when Jessa states that "5 babies due this year." Jessa, Kendra, Lauren, Anna, Joy, Abbie is six. The viewers have only been shown three confirmed pregnancies thus far. So how do we go from 3 to 5 next week?

Abbie is due in January, so her baby will not be a part of the babies born, in 2019. Joy Anna's pregnancy, will be announced next week. However, since this episode was filmed, before Joy Anna's miscarriage, there will unfortunately, not be a change, in the number of Duggar grand-babies. Anna's pregnancy announcement, will not be shown at all, as Josh is no longer, a part of Counting On. Thus, all 5,of the 2019 grand-babies, and the first of the 2020 grand-babies, will be accounted for.

They also show Michelle's surprise at some cafeteria type, and this is where Joy announced her pregnancy (it was posted before). I'm sure Anna will also announce in the next episode, so Jessa will talk about 5 pregnancies. I don't see any conflict here.

I feel sorry for Josiah. He always seemed to be a happy guy. Lauren’s constant negativity has got to be exhausting. Many women have miscarriages ( multiple for me), Many women genuinely struggle with infertility ( years, not a couple months) or are never able to conceive. I truly hope for Josiah, and Lauren, she emotionally matures to comprehend the truly blessed life she has been given.

Well she did say “to me, life had no purpose” and “every day felt worthless”. I think that has to be hurtful to Josiah. How could it not? And before I’m accused of never losing a baby and not understanding I suffered miscarriages and stillbirth in my 8th month. I understand grieving multiple losses and burying my child. Lauren had a very early miscarriage followed by quick conception (4 months is not “trying for quite some time”), a healthy pregnancy and delivery of a beautiful daughter. I think the word “insensitive” used by another poster is definitely accurate.

Actually, if you watched the show and earlier as well, Josiah always was this anxious kid himself who was always unhappy with some little things, always emotional, and like insecure. Lauren on the other hand was very rational and sensible. Who knows, maybe Josiah's anxious personality rubbed off on Lauren?

I have to say in all honesty that prior to my miscarriage, I was overly focused on becoming pregnant and having a baby. To be truthful, I kind of made that my mini-idol, my all-consuming quest and didn't realize how much importance I had attached to it. When I had the miscarriage, it was pretty devastating, but it did cause me to step back and examine my priorities as a Christian. It challenged me in that, "O.k., am I still going to love God anyway, even though this really bad thing has happened to me, to us (and I didn't get what I wanted)? Am I still going to love him, trust Him, even though I don't understand why this happened/happened to me, to us?" I'm not saying having a miscarriage is a good thing by any stretch, but God turned something intended to really crush me into something that helped me grow closer to Him. God is well acquainted with loss and big enough to handle my grief (whether that's a miscarriage, infertility, or a death of someone I loved dearly). We home school and we're somewhat of an anomaly in our homeschooling sphere, where most families have an average of five to six children (some have 10). I've been asked before if I felt odd/out of place. Yes, I did- but only because other people attached such importance and significance to the number of children they had and in doing so, treated me as somehow inferior. Hopefully, Lauren is learning/has learned/will learn that life is not about having babies or the number of babies you can have. Hopefully, she's also learned that she can rely on God to meet her in the hard stuff and that He's still God, regardless of her circumstance.

Jinger, Jeremy and Little Felicity seem like the”normal” one out of the entire family. I like that they are waiting to have another baby. Give Felicity time to be a baby before they have another. You can see they are truly in love and just enjoy being with one another and exploring new places and things together. As far as their house hunting in CA... it was a great option to stay in one of the church properties before they decide where they want to live in LA..... that was a blessing!!!!! Now they can take their time and not be so rushed to pick any apartment!!! Smart move.... I very much love watching the Vuolo family....they need their own show..... I watch Counting On on my cable On Demand.. just so I can fast forward to see what the Vuolo’s are doing ..... love Lissy.... she is so happy and content😍

Lauren doesn't know what a long time is. Two of my friends waited 5 years for a baby and another woman I know spent 16 years trying before they had one. One of my close friends lost her first two at five and six weeks. But it wasn't until she lost her third at 23 weeks that she really started to despair. Thankfully they have two healthy children now. My mother has 14 living children and 8 she lost --some as late as 16 weeks. Five of her miscarriages were in a row. Losing a baby at five weeks is WAY different than losing one at 23 weeks.

It is still losing a baby! We all grieve differently than each other. Don’t ever criticize someone’s grief, because you can’t know exactly how they feel. Trying to compare different peoples’ heartaches is ridiculous. They were all in pain!

For everyone commenting about Lauren's comments...to those who have been struggling, I can see how it would come off badly. But she is young, she is surrounded by women who get pregnant quickly, and when you're trying so hard, every month feels like a long time. In particular after a loss, I'm sure it's even worse. Years ago, I started trying in August and my cycle was completely messed up (and I didn't realize why) so we had some false alarms along the way. The time between each test and each month when I should have had a normal cycle felt like forever as I was going through it. I ended up miraculously getting pregnant in October and found out three weeks later, and I can assure you that time felt very long even though it wasn't. Second time around it took an entire extra year to get pregnant, after trying to figure it out myself and finally getting medical assistance. Regardless of their durations, both were very frustrating, agonizing periods of time when we thought things should be working one way and not understanding why they weren't. And while my experience may pale in comparison to someone who suffered for years, it doesn't make it any less difficult within my own frame of reference. I'm sure if you would have interviewed me at the time I was struggling, I would have said the same thing. She was just saying what she felt and probably wasn't thinking how it might come across to those suffering from true infertility. She was being interviewed about her experience and she expressed how it felt. As she gets older and meets more people, like all of us, she may gain more insight. She's just not there yet. She just doesn't know any different at this point, so give her a break.

I agree. I’ve had multiple losses and grief in my life as well and I handle it very different at 36 than I did at 21. Thankfully I wasn’t surrounded by women telling me how insensitive and blessed I was. Life has a learning curve. It’s steeper for some but we need to help each other, not one-up and batter each other.

AmyRyb & Anon 11.26. Your so right, we do deal with grief differently as we age. I lost my mum at 12 & my dad a few years later, I was an orphan from my twenties, I coped better with my dads death being that bit older, though still very young. My mum waited 15 years to conceive me & yet I got pregnant after 2 months trying with my son, & my husband was in the forces & we only had 3 days together each of those months so I was incredibly lucky. My second child I conceived first cycle of trying, we were together at this point as he was home from deployment. I often think god blessed me as I had such trauma in my life loosing both my parents & nursing my father through terminal cancer while very young myself. I cannot imagine how difficult it is to loose a baby but have seen more than I care to admit in my working life. My heart constantly goes out to all the mums on this blog who have had a loss or multiple losses in some sad cases. The bravery & strength you all show is inspiring. I very much agree that we all need to encourage each other in life not berate others because we don’t think what they feel is as bad as they make out. There is enough sadness in the world without calling out a young woman because some people think she is making too much of her loss. I hope Lauren got proper help to deal with her feelings. Amy I feel your words were very insightful, let’s hope others read them & think more cautiously before they comment.

If the Vuolos are renting the big house, it is not real close to the Masters University. It’s about 20 miles or so from there and the horribly congested 405 freeway. I know, I live in the San Fernando Valley! Hope they got a good “break” on rent. Rents are astronomical here , even in sketchy neighborhoods. Felicity is adorable!!!

9:44 -- The Master's Seminary is on the campus of Grace Community Church. If they're looking near the Sunset Strip -- a very expensive area -- that's about 14 miles from the Seminary, about a 25 min drive.

I'm kind of sad that most of the comments here are criticizing Lauren for saying that they had been trying a long time before she got pregnant again. Put yourself in her shoes. The miscarriage was clearly very hard on her. She wanted a baby very badly. Each month she knew she hadn't conceived was a cruel reminder to her. Four months may not seem like a lot to most of us, but to her, it seemed like a long time. Our insta-judge culture is so short-sighted and keeps us from developing empathy for others.

I am sorry to see that the boys go orienteering while the girls cook the dinner! Similarly in an earlier show Spurgeon was being looked after by his Uncles and told them he had a dirty nappy and they waited for Jessa to come back home.

My husband considered it part of being a good dad to change our daughter's diaper. A number of times he got up in the middle of the night to change her and then brought her to me to nurse, so I could get some rest...even though he had to be at work by 7:30 a.m. and sometimes didn't get home from work until 11:00 p.m. I would not have married a man who wouldn't change a diaper or help with housework. We kind of discussed the breakdown of household chores earlier in our marriage. We agreed he would take the trash out, but I often take it out as a way to say I love you. Likewise, he often steps in and washes the dishes instead of me and is quite capable of doing laundry. He sometimes grocery shops with me, taking part of the list, while I take care of items I need to price match. He enjoys spending extra time with me; I enjoy that he appreciates what I do and wants to help me. Some nights he cooks and cleans up the kitchen (or we may wash dishes together). It's really more about valuing each other and working together, than assigning certain jobs to one spouse or the other, in my opinion.

Ben changes diapers. Jessa’s brothers that were watching Spurgeon were either not married or haven’t had kids yet. Why should they have to change his diaper? He wasn’t in it for hours. Jessa was almost home. I am sure all of the guys will change diapers as they have their own children.

I think Austin seems a bit fed up with the whole thing. When they get together as a family to go out to eat or to have a game night, Austin can get somewhat negative. It doesn’t surprise me that they don’t show up at all events. He’s the boss.

Yeah. That was so staged. The whole move to LA was in the works for a long time. First there were visits to LA, then Jeremy was taking on line classes while the details of the deal were being finalized. In order to get someone with Jeremy's star power to attend the seminary they had to offer him a nice place to live. The school will receive plublicity on TLC in exchange.

The women stayed behind to cook and set up camp? If it’s about quality family time, shouldn’t they tackle this together? Sounds like TLC orchestrated this whole deal. Funny thing is, it’s like they’re intentionally setting them up to look foolish, just like with the inane questions they’re asked.

Didn't they say that Jana planned this activity? It's not out of the realm of possibility for her and/or her brothers to put together the team building equipment (it was fairly basic stuff) or for her to plan that the guys do the one activity while the females set up camp. We know the guys are capable of grilling, since we've seen them do it on the show, and we know they are capable of setting up camp. The females actually took on something that is stereotypically male (setting up tents) and female (cooking). Besides, there are so many of them. It doesn't take 15 adults to do that amount of work.

Of course TLC has control over the content. Increased viewership means increased advertising dollars which leads to increased profit for the network. If they just followed them around while they cleaned house, cooked meals or shopped at Wal-Mart people would soon stop watching. To call this a reality show is just so far off base. Nothing wrong with events being staged as long as people know this isn’t real but watch for the entertainment value. I personally have stopped watching all so called reality shows but still like to keep up with the Duggars so that’s why I come here for news. Too many families have been torn apart after getting a reality show. I really believe the constant media attention isn’t healthy for young children. Of course the almighty dollar has a very seductive pull on anyone. I’m sure it would be hard to leave the TLC dollars behind and go back to a normal life.

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Welcome to the premiere source for factual, encouraging updates on Jim Bob & Michelle Duggar and their 19 kids (TLC's 19 Kids and Counting & Counting On). Our site is not maintained by the Duggars, but we (Lily and Ellie) are personal friends of the family.